Radio host Charlamagne Tha God urged President Biden not to issue preemptive pardons to newly elected President Donald Trump’s political enemies before leaving office, saying the move would imply the recipients are guilty.
He made the comments during Thursday’s episode of ‘The Breakfast Clubradio program, adding that the president should focus on individuals in prison for non-violent crimes.
“I also don’t think President Biden should issue a preventive pardon. It makes people look guilty if you ask me. Biden should pardon all nonviolent drug offenders in federal prison,” he said a clip highlighted by Mediaite.
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Radio host Charlamagne Tha God recently urged President Biden not to preemptively pardon Trump’s enemies because it “makes people look guilty.” ((Photo by Marcus Ingram/Getty Images))
The White House announced Thursday that the president commuted prison sentences for nearly 1,500 people and granted 39 pardons, the largest single-day clemency in modern history.
According to recent reporting from Politico, the White House is also currently discussing pardoning prominent Trump critics, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, Sen.-elect Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo.
The outlet noted that White House counsel Ed Siskel is arranging talks about the possible pardon with several other senior Biden aides, including Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, although Biden himself has not yet been part of the talks.
During Wednesday’s episode of ABC’s “The View,” former President Bill Clinton spoke about this Biden may pardon his wifeHillary Clinton. “I think if President Biden wants to talk to me about that, I’ll talk to him about it, but I don’t think I should give public advice on the pardon power,” he said.
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President Biden broke his repeated promise not to pardon his son Hunter by announcing earlier this month that he had pardoned him. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
Charlamagne responded to those comments on Thursday, reiterating the need for the president to preserve pardons for non-violent offenders.
“He should pardon everyone in federal prison for non-violent pot convictions, okay? He should pardon Marilyn Mosby,” he said, referring to the former Baltimore state’s attorney.
“Those are the graces he should work on before he moves his old home out of here,” the host said.
Breakfast Club co-host DJ Envy defended the idea of pardoning Trump’s enemies so he can’t pursue them once he gets back to the White House: “We know who Trump is, and we know what Trump is likely to do.”
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Charlamagne shot back: “Or it could mean that Trump knows something we don’t and that’s why he’s going after these people. I just don’t understand why you would pardon someone preemptively. It feels like you’re saying, ‘Okay, I know this person is guilty of something, and Trump might go after him.'”
Other liberals have advised Biden to avoid preemptively pardoning Trump’s enemies. Washington Post journalist Ruth Marcus wrote one column this week stating that if Biden were to use the pardon in this way, he would “set an unfortunate precedent, one that will likely be repeated by some future presidents seeking to protect their allies from retaliation.”
Elizabeth Pritchett of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
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